Agitator



Patented Oct. 17, 1950 2,526,367 AGITATOR Carl Kaltenbach and LudwigSchmitt, Bronx, N. Y.

Application March 22, 1950, Serial No. 151,201

4 Claims. (Cl. 259-134) The present invention relates to agitators and,more particularly, relates to an agitator for use in connection withapparatus of the type for continuously lcongealing frozen'confections,such as ice creams, custards, sherbets, and the like, the agitatorincluding blades for scraping the confection from the inner cylindricalSide Wall of the freezing cylinder to which the confection has beencaused to adhere, and being an improvement over the agitator disclosedin our prior United States Letters Patent No. 2,188,551 of January 30,1940.

Apparatus of the foregoing type are subject to rigid inspection byhealth authorities of many localities and must comply with the healthregulations of such localities. InV order to be approved, the apparatusmust be adapted for thorough and absolutely reliable cleaning includingthe blades of the agitator which usually is facilitated by removablymounting the blades on the rotor or shaft of the agitator.

In so mounting the blades, it is essential that the blades be easilydetached and yet be reliably connected to prevent accidental detachmentor displacement when in use. It is also essential, if not of primeimportance, that the means for connecting the blades be adapted forthorough cleaning and also be constructed and arranged as to facilitateinspection thereof.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide animproved agitator of the character described herein wherein the bladeconnecting means are constructed and arranged to comply with theforegoing requirements.

Another object is to provide such connecting means which are rugged anddurable in construction and which can withstand such rough usage towhich they may be subjected.

A further object is to provide such connecting means which comprisesimple and practical elements adapted to be formed in an economicalmanner.

Other and further objects will be obvious upon an understanding of theillustrative embodiments about to be described, or will be indicated inthe appended claims, and various advantages not referred to herein willoccur to one skilled in the art upon employment of the' invention inpractice.

In accordance with the invention, the foregoing objects are accomplishedby providing an agitator comprising a shaft or rotor, pairs of outwardlyextending arms on the shaft each having at its free end a cylindricalbore parallel to the shaft provided with an open side section, a scraperblade for each pair of arms having cylindrical formations pivotallymounted in each bore, and

pin and groove means associated with at least one bore and one formationof each pair of arms for locking the blades against axial movement withrespect to the bores and the shaft.

In the preferred embodiment of the invention about to be described indetail, one bore of each pair of arms has an arcuate groove between theends thereof commencing at one end of the open section and, if desired,being of diminishing depth in a circumferential direction away from theopen section; and one formation of each blade has a pin adapted to bedisposed in the groove.

A preferred embodiment of the invention has been chosen for purposes ofillustration and description as is shown in the accompanying drawing,forming a part of the specification, wherein- Fig. 1 is a sideelevational view of an agitator, the elements embodying the presentinvention being shown in full lines and the conventional prior artstructure being shown in broken lines Fig. 2 is a sectional View takenalong the line 2-2 on Fig. l1 in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view illustrating theconnecting means in blade lock ing position.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary perspective View illustrating the bladespositioned for removal from the arms.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary exploded perspective view illustratinga portion of the blade disconnected from an arm.

Referring to the drawing in detail and more particularly to Figs. 1 and2 thereof, there is shown apparatus for congealing frozen confectionswhich comprises a cylinder I 0 in which the confection is frozen byapplying -a refrigerating or cooling medium to the outer walls of thecylinder by means of a heat exchanger (not shown), a closure II for oneend of the cylinder having an inlet I2 through which the mix used inmaking the confection is introduced, a closure I4 for the other end ofthe cylinder having an outlet I5 for removing the frozen confection fromthe cylinder, and a shaft or rotor I6 rotatably mounted between theclosures and carrying blades I'I for scraping the congealed or frozenconfection from the inner walls of the cylinder and elements I8 fordirecting the frozen confection towards the outlet.

As shown herein by way of example, the shaft has four pairs of spacedapart radially outwardly extending arms I9 progressively disposed at anangle of ninety degrees to each other, each pair of arms serving tosupport a blade Il, as about to be described.

Referring more particularly to Figs. 3, 4, and 5,

which illustrate the invention in detail, the arms I9 are shown fonmedWith a cylindrical through bore 2l) parallel to the shaft i6, which boreis provided with an open or cut-away side section 2| of about ninetydegrees. One bore of each pair of arms has an arcuate groove or slot 22between its ends commencing at one end of the open section and.diminishing in depth in a circumferential direction away from the opensection (Fig. 3).

Each blade I'I has a lengthwise extending scraping edge 24 at one sidethereof and a pair` of cylindrical formations 25 at the other sidethereof adapted to be pivotally mounted in the:

bores 28 in the manner described hereinafter. One formation 25 of eachblade hasa radially extending pin 26 thereon disposed at an angle,slightly less than ninety degrees with respect to the blade sectionproper, which pin is adapted tobe positioned in the groove 22 to loclcthe blade vagainst axial movement in the bore but which facilitatesassembly and detachment of the blades I1 from the le..

In order to assemble the blades I1' on the arms 1:95, a blade sectionproper is aligned withits pair vofi arms with its scraping edge facingoutwardly of: the free ends of theY arms and itsl formations 25 inaxiali alignment with and to the side of the bores 22, as shown in Fig.5. The. formations are then slid axially into the bores with the pin 2t,passing through the-open section 2i to a position whereby the pin is inalignment with the groove .22, as shown in Fig. 4. The bladeY formationsthereafter are rotated in the bores so that the Vpin enters the groove.1f desired, slight pressure is applied on the blade to effect frictionalengagement. between the end of the pin and a portion -of diminisheddepth of the groove, whereby accidental separation of the blades fromthe arms is prevented prior to mounting the shaft in the cylinder i8.

When the shaft is irnountedin the cylinder and isfrotated, centrifugalforce andthe mass of confection in the cyiin er swing theblades'outwardlv to position shown in Fig. 3 with edge Z in scrapingrelation with the inner wall of the cylinder. Removal of the blades isreadily effected by following the foregoing procedure in reverse order.

From the foregoing description, it will be seen that the presentinvention provides an improved agitator structure wherein the blades arereadily locked in position during operation of the apparatus. It is tobe noted also that the pivotal mounting insures a self-sharpening actionon the edge 2li of the blade. The locking elements are simple andpractical, facilitate easy assembly and detachment of the blades andhave surfaces which lend themselves to thorough cleaning in ayconvenient manner.

As various changes may be made in the form, construction and arrangementof the parts herein, without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention and without sacricing any of its advantages, it is to beunderstood that all matters are to be interpreted as illustrative andnot in any limiting sense.

What is claimed is:

1. An agitator for apparatus of the class described comprising a shaft,a pair of outwardly extending arms on said shaft each having at its freeend a cylindrical bore parallel to said shaft provided with an open sidesection, a scraper blade having a cylindrical formation pivotallymounted in each bore, and pin and groove means associated with one ofsaid bores and one of said formations for locking said blade againstaxial movement with respect to said bores, said groove means beingtransverse to the longitudinal axis of said shaft.

2. An agitator for apparatus of the class described comprising a shaft,a pair of outwardly extending arms on said shaft each having at its freeend a cylindrical bore parallel to said shaft provided with an open sidesection, one of said bores having an arcuate groove between the endsthereof commencing at one end of the open section, a scraper bladehaving a cylindrical formation pivotally mounted in each bore, and a pinon one of said formations disposed in said groove for lockingV saidblade against axial movement with respect to said bores.

3. An agitator for apparatus of the class describedv comprising a shaft,a pair of outwardly extending arms on said shaft each having at its freeend a cylindrical bore parallel to said shaft provided with an open sidesection, one

of said bores having an arcuate groove between the ends thereofcommencing at one end of the open section and diminishing in depth in acircumferential direction away from the open section, a scraper bladehaving a cylindrical formaion pivotally mounted in each bore, and a pinon one of said formations disposed in said groove for locking said bladeagainst axial movement with respect to said bores.

4. An agitator forvapparatus of the class described' comprising a shaft,a pair vof outwardly extending arms onsaid shaft each having at its freeend a cylindrical bore parallel to said shaft providedl with an openside section of about ninety deg-rees, one of said bores having anarcuategroove between the ends thereof com- Vinenting at' one end' ofthe open section and ldiminishing in depthv in a circumferential direc-REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberY y Name Date y 864,632. Fegley Aug. 27,1907 "2,023,607 Miller Decr 10, 1935 2,085,160 Kaup et alr June 29, 19372,159,450 Parcell. May 23, 1939 2,188,551l Kaltenbach et al. Jan. 3Q,i940 2,470,691

Erickson et al Mar. 17, 1949

